By EKalman February 28, 2023 - 1:05am

One of the most common complications of dental problems is peri-implantitis. The disease is characterized by inflammation of the soft and bone tissues around the established dental structure.

If inflammatory processes are noticed on time and the patient immediately goes to the clinic, the tooth implant problems can be solved conservatively. In difficult cases, surgery with bone tissue augmentation or the removal of an implant is required.

Causes for the Development of Peri-implantitis
An infection in the implant area can occur any time after implantation: after a few weeks, months, or or years. Many factors lead to its development: medical errors, the patient's negligent attitude to oral hygiene, and the poor quality of the dental structure.

What Mistakes Can a Doctor Make?
- The instruments are not sterile, insufficient antisepsis of the surgical site;
- Overheating or hypothermia of tissues during surgery;
- The implant system is incorrectly sized, there are micro gaps between the screw and the abutment;
- When installing after tooth extraction, saliva got into the hole;
- No contraindications have been identified.

Poor quality of implants can cause corrosion, breakage of the dental structure, and as a result, inflammation of nearby tissues. The process of osseointegration may also be impaired, although a patient may not know about it. After implantation, the infection easily penetrates the tissues through the wound, so a violation of medical prescriptions can cause inflammation.

In the later stages, peri-implantitis can occur due to poor oral hygiene. Plaque accumulates on artificial teeth and the bacterial flora spreads into the deeper layers of soft tissues. At risk are people with a history of diabetes mellitus, tuberculosis, cancer, immune disorders, and dental diseases (periodontitis, gingivitis, and other infections).

The Symptoms of Peri-implantitis
Symptoms are similar to mucositis and other inflammatory diseases of dental tissues:
- hyperemia, swelling of the gums;
- sharp or dull pain in the area of the implant, which is aggravated by pressure;
- bad breath;
- bleeding, purulent discharge from under the gums, the formation of fistulas, and gum pockets;
- mobility of an artificial tooth.

Treatment of Peri-implantitis
Before starting therapy, the doctor conducts a diagnosis and confirms it. Important indicators are determined using X-rays, orthopantomography, and 3D computed tomography (CT). The dentist evaluates the degree of the inflammatory process and bone resorption. Additionally, laboratory urine, blood, and oral fluid tests are carried out.

Conservative and surgical methods carry out the treatment. The choice of technique depends on the clinical case and the severity of the disease. The main task is to remove the source of infection.

Re-implantation is possible after the complete elimination of inflammatory processes but not earlier than two months after removing the implant.

Prevention of Peri-implantitis
Choose a dental clinic with a good reputation. You can read the reviews of patients on the forums. Don’t be tempted by the low price of the implant system, as it may turn out to be of poor quality.

However, it doesn’t depend solely on the clinic and doctor. You are responsible for your own health in the post-op healing period. As soon as you leave the clinic, there are rules to be followed, and if you don’t treat them seriously, the chances of dental implant problems increase significantly.

Here are the rules:
- Strictly follow the recommendations of the doctor for the rehabilitation period;
- Properly care for orthopedic structures, use an irrigator, interdental brushes, and dental floss;
- maintain immunity at a high level;
- Undergo a preventive examination at the dentist, treat pathologies of the dentoalveolar system in time;
- One time in six months to do professional cleaning from plaque, and stones in the oral cavity;
- quit smoking, and drug use;
- Treat chronic diseases in the acute phase.

If you follow them, the chances of peri-implantitis will be significantly reduced.